Flea (Chrono Trigger)
Flea, known as in Japanese, is a fictional character in the Chrono series of video games. They first appear in Chrono Trigger as an antagonist before appearing as a cameo in the sequel Chrono Cross. They present as feminine but identify as a man, and in Japanese use feminine signifiers in their speech. They serve as an antagonist and as a minion to the antagonist Magus. They appear in the sequel Chrono Cross as an optional opponent. They received a generally positive reception, and have been called an icon due to their gender identity and expression, but the game was also criticized for employing the trope of the gender ambiguous villain. Concept and creation Flea was created for Chrono Trigger by artist Akira Toriyama. They present as feminine but identifies as a man. Flea is named Mayonē in Japanese, a play on mayonnaise. This was changed in the English version to Flea, based on the musician Flea. Flea ends all of their sentences with "yo ne" in the Japanese version, intended to be "sickeningly cutesy." They also speak in a tough feminine tone, using the personal pronoun 'atai'. During English localization, the sexual culture of Flea's character was partially lost due to Nintendo of America's strict policies on "sexually suggestive or explicit content." Feminine signifiers, such as feminine manner of speaking, tildes and long vowel marks, and heart icons, were absent in the English version. The Japanese version features an item called Mayonē's Bra which was censored and changed to Flea Vest in the English version. Flea Vest was changed to Flea Bustier in the Nintendo DS English localization. Appearances Flea first appears in Chrono Trigger, where they serves as a subordinate to one of the game's antagonists, Magus. They are encountered by the protagonists in Magus' Castle, where they are mistaken for a woman before clarifying that they are actually a man. They elaborate that gender is irrelevant when compared to power and beauty. Flea uses various attacks that inflict status effects, including blind, confuse, and rage. Flea is defeated, and later returns, along with fellow subordinates Ozzie and Slash, to do battle against Magus, who had defected to join the protagonists. Flea later appears alongside Ozzie and Slash in the sequel Chrono Cross in a cameo role, where players can choose to fight them. Reception Since appearing in Chrono Trigger, Flea has become an iconic character for their gender identity and expression. They were identified as the most "overt representation of alternate sexuality" in Chrono Trigger. One commenter wrote that Flea is an inauthentic representation of trans people and drag culture, referring to them instead as an okama. He discussed how Flea's attacks represent how people react to "nontraditional genderings": "Some people turn a blind eye to them, while others become confused and enraged," adding that "the biggest threat to our well-being doesn't come from people like Flea, but rather from our reactions to them." Author Madeleine Brookman expressed surprise that Nintendo of America allowed the localization team to depict them the way they did. According to authors Adrienne Shaw and Elizaveta Friesem, Flea is coded as non-binary or genderqueer. Writer Beth Cato lamented the lack of representation for transgender people in video games, feeling that Flea was inadequate for this. A transgender game designer named Paige regarded Flea as problematic while noting that Flea's outlook on gender – that it matters less than power and beauty – was inspirational. Autostraddle and Salon also enjoyed this line, with the latter calling it "words to live by." Autostraddle regarded it as their favorite in Chrono Trigger. They expressed disappointment that they were a villain, praising the game for not making a joke out of Flea's ambiguous gender, though noting that they were unsure of how Flea was meant to be depicted, citing poor representation of trans and gender-nonconforming people during localization. The Advocate regarded the line as one of the "greatest pro-trans dialogue in gaming history" and listed Flea as one of the best LGBT characters in video games. Author Jesse Nelson used Flea as an example of how media often tends to present sexuality in a villainous light, while The Escapist used them as an example of trans women and crossdressers being made into villains. Author William Gibbons found it disturbing that androgyny in characters such as Flea was used as an indicator of villainy. References Category:Chrono series characters Category:LGBT characters in video games Category:Square Enix antagonists Category:Video game bosses Category:Characters designed by Akira Toriyama Category:Fictional hermaphrodites and people of unclear gender Category:Fictional henchmen Category:Fictional characters introduced in 1995